Hold
by alexb49
Summary: Hunted by the undead, they have to make their escape. Set immediately after S1 The Storm. Written for the Zutara Halloween challenge Rating for mild swearing and some gross things.


Set after S1: The Storm

For the Zutara Halloween challenge 2009

Warning: I look at gross things at work all day so my gross-meter is **very **skewed. If you think this rating is not appropriate I apologize for any discomfort. Please let me know and I will be happy to revise.

A/N: The _jiang shi_ are a genuine myth and I have cribbed their abilities from various pop culture sources.

I do not own ATLA or make any money off of this.

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The storm seemed to decide it was done torturing the small island with its wayward travelers. A cold wind followed chased the rain, breaking up the clouds in the night sky. Zuko awkwardly cradled the limp Water Tribe girl to his chest, trying to keep her warm. He vaguely remembered the brother calling her Katara.

He strained to hear any hint of movement outside their cramped hiding place. Dead quiet. He snorted at how appropriate the expression was then promptly scolded himself for being so morbid.

The girl's own shallow breathing was the only thing breaking the eerie silence. Thankfully the ground cover was dense enough that anything passing them on foot would make noise. The revolting creatures hunting them would raise an alarm before they got too close.

He hoped.

Zuko let himself relax his grip on the girl. He needed to get her to safety. She had slipped back into unconsciousness. If these… _things_ caught them… A shiver went up his spine that was unrelated to the cold.

No one was going to get caught. He was not going to let that happen. He tried to collect his thoughts.

It had been just his fucking luck. The tail end of that horrendous storm wound up forcing his ship to come to ground in this miserable place. His men had called it the Isle of the Dead and to a man had refused to disembark no matter how badly the weather battered them in anchorage. The island was the home of the _jiang shi_, his men had said: the walking undead that hunted down anyone stranded on their shores.

The moving cadavers fed off the souls of the living one marine had warned. Once drained of _chi_, their victims would join the ranks of these mindless hunters, trapped between life and death for eternity.

Zuko had thought them all superstitious fools. The urge to feel land under his feet and his own damned curiosity made him itchy to get away. The ship had always felt like his prison and he would take any chance to be free of it. They weren't going anywhere until repairs were completed so he stubbornly rowed ashore with indulgent Uncle in tow. Silly old fool wouldn't let them leave the ship without packing a snack.

It was at the beach that they came upon the Avatar and the Water Tribe siblings, the same storm forcing the air bison to land right in Zuko's lap. Before he could be permitted to feel even one iota of good fortune, the fiends had swarmed over them like flies to honey.

The attack was horrific. Rotting skin hung off their moldy white bodies in ribbons, their rigid limbs forcing them to hop almost comically in pursuit. The _jiang shi_ went after the girl first. Afterwards, Uncle had explained that feminine _yin_ made women irresistible to the evil things. They had pierced the girl's water skin with their long black fingernails, disarming her. Her attempts to bend the falling rain at them grew weaker as they began to devour her _chi_ as soon as they overwhelmed her.

There had been so many of them. Uncle had warned him against using simple fire against them. Explosives would have been better but Zuko had foolishly ignored Uncle yet again. The flames were only hot enough to slow the _jiang shi_ down, flesh bubbling off their bones as they continued relentlessly forward. The smell, oh gods, the smell of it- the memory made him gag.

Even the Avatar didn't know how to handle them all. He was still just a boy after all, facing down a horde of demons. Once the initial shock had worn off and they had battled back, the girl and her captors had disappeared.

Uncle had suggested that they all split up to cover as much ground as possible. The Water Tribe boy had sneered at first, but relented as Uncle swore on the memory of his son that the firebenders would do all they could to help find the girl.

Zuko honestly wanted to help. He had never wished the Avatar or his friends ill. And no one deserved to be condemned to this horrific half life. Least of all this young girl.

They all agreed that time was of the essence if they had a chance of saving her. Uncle wouldn't let them leave until they had two things. Iroh portioned out sticky rice from the food he had packed. He explained that it was one of the few items available to them that could reverse the effects of the _jiang shi's_ touch if caught in time. Zuko berated himself for having thought his uncle was merely thinking of his stomach. He should have known the old man would be two steps ahead.

Advice was the second thing Uncle gave them. The undead may have been blind but their hearing allowed them to hunt their targets by sound. The corpses were so attuned to the breath of the living that they could track using that alone.

So equipped, they each took a different direction.

More of his awful fucking luck that he was the one to stumble upon the girl. He found a group of the _jiang shi_ squabbling over her like dogs fighting over a bone. She lay there, pale and deathly still, barely breathing but alive.

There were far too many of them for Zuko to take them on by himself. He remembered his uncle's warning. Stealth was not a problem for him. Step one was ditching his noisy armor. It was an easy decision. He hated the damn thing and he had plenty of spares. He had thought of taking to the trees but that was quickly dismissed. All of the growth on this insane island was either too large to scale unequipped or too small to support a person's weight. He set a half dead sapling alight, crackles of the burning wood both distracting the ghoulish creatures as well as masking his own sounds. Holding his breath, he navigated his way to the girl. He had gathered the waterbender up and started the long way back to his rowboat as quietly as he could. The Water Tribe girl hung like a ragdoll in his arms. Once he knew they were too far for the _jiang shi _to catch up easily he ran and ran and ran until his lungs burned and his muscles ached and he couldn't run anymore.

Close to collapse, Zuko had found the small cave, grateful to have some shelter to recover and assess the girl's status. As he set her down, he brushed the hair from her face, feeling a twinge of alarm at how cold her skin was.

It had shocked him to see her look so… so _fragile_. He had only ever seen the girl healthy, strong and unafraid. He silently promised he would do what he could to get her back safely.

And now here they were. Trapped like rats in a cage with enemies all around. He elevated his own body temperature to try to warm the Water Tribe girl again with no luck. Her pulses were alarmingly thready.

The rice! It was mashed up in his pocket, forgotten. Why Uncle had working knowledge on how to deal with the undead was something he didn't want to dwell on. Zuko dug out half of the sticky mess and worked the girl's mouth open to shove the rice inside.

It made him flinch violently when she took a deep, shaky breath the instant the rice hit her tongue. Her blue eyes fluttered open, still dazed. He pressed a finger to her lips to urge her silence. He had no idea how sensitive the creatures' hearing truly was and he had no desire to test it. Thankfully she stilled, sagging in his arms once she recognized his touch as 'human' and 'alive'. Zuko doubted she knew where she was. He bundled her closer, trying to warm her yet again.

It worked this time. The girl leaned into the heat his body was putting out, letting out a soft murmur of contentment. This brought a flush to Zuko's face. It was a rare thing in his life to hear any sounds of pleasure and having it directed at him was rarer still. She buried her face in his shoulder.

Thinking about what the girl must have gone through made him vaguely ill, hungry mouths tearing at her soul. Without thinking, he began stroking her hair to soothe her. She pressed in tighter.

The whistle of wind outside brought Zuko back to reality. What the hells was he doing, comforting this peasant? He berated himself for such maudlin nonsense. Besides, the Water Tribe girl was in no state to realize who was helping her and would probably be trying to defend herself if she had the strength.

He needed to focus. Both their lives hung in the balance.

A loud crack of a breaking branch made Zuko look up warily. He untangled himself from the girl, peeking out the cave's entrance uneasily. The light from the rising moon made dead white flesh stand out clearly in the distance. Gooseflesh crept up the back of his bare scalp at the sight of them.

They needed to get out of there.

Behind him, the girl began moaning wordlessly, blindly reaching for human contact once it had sunk in that she was alone. He returned to her side, frantically trying to quiet her. She clutched at his shirt instinctively, near sobbing in relief when she found him.

Pensively, he fingered the remaining rice in his pocket. Here was his only backup if he was attacked. But the girl's condition was too unstable and they still had far to go. He doubted she would accept his help once more coherent but there was only one way to find out. Resolute, he pressed the rice to the girl's lips. Her mouth accepted it automatically.

The response to the second portion of rice was as dramatic as the first. Zuko could see the recognition blossom across her face, turning to fear then to anger. The girl flailed wildly at him, trying to escape. He grunted to avoid crying out as she clubbed him in the temple with a rock that found its way into her hand.

The snapping of branches breaking underfoot made them both hug the ground.

The throbbing in Zuko's head made it difficult to concentrate. He angrily jabbed a finger in the girl's face then brought his finger to his lips to demand her silence. Grimacing he mimed slicing his finger across his throat and pointed at the entrance of their hiding spot. _Quiet or we're dead._ He sighed in relief as she nodded wordlessly in understanding.

He squatted by their only exit, letting out an involuntary gasp once he looked outside. More than a handful of the lumbering corpses were within striking distance. Trying to swallow his panic, Zuko looked back at the girl and held out his hand imploringly. Her eyes held nothing but suspicion. Her hand trembled as she reluctantly reached out to him.

They fled. Her weakened state made her steps falter. He hefted her in his arms and got them moving again. Can't stop. There was only another quarter kilometer to go. The _jiang shi _tracked their noisy path through the forest, but he knew he was faster. Zuko was sure he could get them both to the small rowboat. They could stay just off shore until the others returned.

His chest hurt from the evening's cold dry air. Must keep going. Just a few more meters and they would be safe.

Zuko's heart sank as he spotted more flashes of white ahead of them. The girl tensed in his arms as he pulled up short next to a massive old oak. He set her down gently, holding her steady until she regained her balance. The girl was a fighter, like him. He knew she would want to face them on her own two feet.

There were twenty or more of the _jiang shi_ between them and the beach with countless more closing in on them from behind. No sign of the Water Tribe boy, the Avatar or his uncle.

The girl tried to bend but the puddles at their feet barely quivered in response, her _chi_ still depleted. Zuko battled to tamp down his own instinctual panic. He took her hand and gave it a small squeeze as he turned to face her. He was grudgingly impressed at her stoic determination to show no fear as the ring of _jiang shi_ tightened around them.

He needed to do something. Anything. They couldn't die here. He wouldn't let them.

He gently brushed a stray hair from her forehead. She scanned his face in confusion. He pressed her small frame against the trunk of the oak and gripped the bark on either side of her, trying to use himself as a shield. Zuko closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind.

Breath is the source of fire, Uncle always said. Zuko's first ever lesson in firebending was a breathing exercise. Patience was not exactly his strong point but he was good at this. If the creatures couldn't hear him breathing, then he should be able to hide himself and the girl in plain sight.

In theory, anyway. He fervently hoped that his uncle would return to their rendezvous point soon.

Zuko sucked in a lungful of air and tried to focus. It was hard. Every instinct screamed at him. _Turn and fight! Abandon the girl if you want a better chance to save yourself! _But he could hear her erratic gasps as she battled to keep her courage against horrendous odds and he just couldn't _do_ it.

He hugged her head to his chest to let her muffle any sounds. Zuko took one last deep gulp and pressed his face to her hair. He caught its fragrance on his tongue. The sharp tang of each other's sweat intermingled with something else. Slightly sweet, perhaps like the jasmine tea Uncle was so fond of. He focused on the scent, letting his body slow down to almost nothing. He could vaguely feel the girl wrapped herself tighter to him.

Time passed. Seconds? Minutes? It felt like hours. His limbs ached and his lungs were crying out for air but he pushed through it. The rest of the rescue party needed more time to return. Zuko was dimly aware of the press of _bodies_ nearby.

Something cold and wet and reeking of decay sniffed at his ear.

He thought of flowers.

There was a sudden cacophony of sound penetrated his thick thoughts. What was happening? He didn't dare look. They were still alive and that was all that mattered.

A hand on Zuko's shoulder whipped him around, shattering his focus into tiny pieces. A diver coming to the surface, he drew his harsh first breath, balling his hands into fists as he sluggishly prepared to fight. A cramp rippled through his thigh, forcing his leg out from under him but he was caught before he hit the ground.

"Zuko!" His uncle's bruising hug was the most welcome thing in the world. The girl stared at them both, transfixed.

"Katara!" The Water Tribe boy joyfully dragged his sister away to safety.

Zuko continued his big labored gasps, blearily taking in the carnage around him. The Avatar's skin was still alight as he created a thick ceiling for the stone prison where he had stacked the struggling _jiang shi _like cordwood. The small monk sank to the ground as the glow left him. Once recovered, the boy fretted over the Water Tribe girl and used a funnel of air to gently place the siblings on the air bison's saddle.

The girl was still watching Uncle fuss over his nephew just as she waved away her brother's attempts to tend to her. The look directed at Zuko was wary, perhaps laced with a touch of sadness. There was no sign of hate or anger in her now and he was a little shocked to feel relief at that.

His brain must have still been addled.

The massive beast with its passengers disappeared into the clear evening sky.

He would find them again. He was sure of it.


End file.
